Kanto: Year Zero
by BulbasaurusRex28
Summary: Set three years after the end of the Great Pokemon War, this story finds teenager Isaac Bloom struggling to both accept the effects of war and find his place in the world. After a tragic event at home, the return of a Pokemon Isaac has not seen in almost a decade brings him renewed hope and a sense of purpose. It's not the Pokemon adventure you know - it's darker - but Isaac Bloom'
1. Chapter 1: Isaac Bloom's Legacy Pokemon

CHAPTER 1 – ISAAC BLOOM'S LEGACY POKEMON

Lavender Town had always been surrounded by death. Pokemon Tower stretched into the sky and earned its status as Kanto's permanent reminder that the partnerships between humans and Pokemon would one day come to an end, one way or another; with the death of a human, or the death of a Pokemon.

It was out back of Pokemon Tower that Isaac sat. There was a constant chill in the air in Lavender Town. And for that reason, Isaac wrapped himself in a jacket and covered his frizzy brown hair with a red and white cap. He stared at the grave in front of him. _Here lies the body of Markus Bloom: beloved husband, friend and father. _

Three years had passed since the end of the war. But Isaac still didn't know peace. The war had lasted almost a decade. Families had been torn apart. Towns and cities just about remained standing. And the number of Pokemon and humans buried in Pokemon Tower had grown exponentially.

'Gastly.'

The ghost Pokemon had been by Isaac's side since he had entered the gates, but it had remained silent, respecting Isaac's need to mourn. It sounded almost sorrowful when it spoke, apologetic to break the silence. Isaac had never owned or caught a Pokemon before. His father had embarked upon the Kanto gym challenge when Isaac was just a baby and had promised to teach him to train and battle Pokemon once he had collected all eight badges. He was six in when he was called to enlist in the army. He'd never complete the Kanto gym challenge. Any ideas that Isaac had of becoming a Pokemon trainer had died with his father.

Gastly was the closest Isaac had come to befriending a Pokemon. It would be wrong to call what Isaac and Gastly had a friendship, but it was an understanding of sorts. Gastly had watched Isaac visit his father's grave for weeks before he made himself known. And since then, the two had spent hours together in the sadness of their surroundings, most of the time in complete silence. When Isaac left there was a nod in acknowledgement of the time they had spent together and an agreement that they would do the same again the following day. And every day thereafter.

'Isaac!'

A shrill high-pitched voice carried over the air. The thumping of footsteps got louder and louder. The cemetery gate was flung open. Gastly disappeared. A girl raced towards Isaac.

'I knew I'd find you here. You have to come with me,' she said.

'Sacha. What are you talking about? What are you doing back? You're supposed to be in Vermil-'

'No time to explain. Come with me. Now.'

Sacha had dreamed of becoming a Pokemon trainer her entire life. Four years previous she had been gifted her first Pokemon: Cubone. And she'd been travelling Kanto ever since. She was three gym badges into the challenge. And rarely did she return to Lavender.

No sooner had she arrived, she was already on her way again, beckoning for Isaac to follow her. She wasn't joking. She didn't have time to explain. That was worrying. Normally she was happy-go-lucky, determined but relaxed. Not now. Isaac looked around for Gastly. He caught him watching from a window on the third floor of the Tower. He gave him a nod goodbye and ran after his friend.

Isaac sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him and somehow managed to catch up with Sacha who refused to stop or speak for fear that any words would slow them down. Isaac knew the route they were taking. Shortcuts between houses. Jumps over fences. It was the same route they'd always taken as children. Back to Isaac's house.

Something wasn't right. The closer they got, the clearer it became. Flashing blue lights. And then. THUMP.

Isaac stopped. A hand was planted firmly in his chest. He looked at the face of the Machoke it belonged to. There was no way Isaac was getting through. He looked over Machoke's shoulder. The blue lights were right outside his house. Windows smashed. Flames licking at the walls being doused by Squirtle's water gun. And at the centre of it all was Officer Jenny.

'Let them through,' Officer Jenny ordered when the flames were all out.

'Where's mum?' Isaac asked, looking from Officer Jenny to Sacha.

'It's going to be ok,' Jenny replied. Though the tone of her voice suggested she was lying.

'Where is she?'

Isaac had already assumed the worst and the tears began to trickle down his cheeks. Sacha pulled him into her arms and held him so tight that it was uncomfortable. But Isaac couldn't refuse. He allowed himself to lean on her. To cry into her shoulder.

'Machoke, get these people inside,' Jenny motioned to the watching townsfolk who turned away at the sight of Machoke marching towards them.

Isaac lifted the police tape and crawled through. His home, his possessions, his entire life had been destroyed in the fire. He flicked on the torch and shed light on the damage that had been done. It was devastating for him to be there, right in the middle of it, but it was where he needed to be. His father had died during the war, now his mother had died in a tragic accident. He was left to contemplate what remained of his life.

'You shouldn't be here.'

'Neither should you.'

Isaac turned and shone the torch in Sacha's face. She reached out and lowered it slowly. They stood in silence and stared at one another. Sacha searched desperately for something to say but there was nothing. Nothing she could say would make anything better.

'Come home,' she said.

'I am home.'

'Isaac. You can't be here. This won't help.'

'What will?'

And, to that, Sacha had no response. Their friendship had been strained since Sacha had left on her journey to become a Pokemon trainer. Something that the two of them had always dreamed of doing together. They were still friends, sure, but it was tinged with jealousy. Made all the worse when Sacha's father returned from the war with his life intact.

'I think we should-'

'Stop,' Isaac said.

'Yes. Let's go.'

'No. Stop,' and Sacha remained still under Isaac's instruction. 'Can you hear that?'

She listened hard. Somewhere in the house there was a noise. An ever so slight banging. A rummaging. Constant.

Isaac, with a newfound optimism, bounded up the stairs. Sacha close behind. At the top, he stopped again. Listened carefully. Then, left.

His mother's room. The bed was thrown up against the side. Drawers and bedside tables had been smashed. Holes had been punched in the walls and picture frames fallen from their fixtures, the smashed glass littered the carpet. Isaac turned to Sacha, both thinking the same thing.

'This wasn't just a fire,' Isaac finally said.

'Why would someone do this? Who would do this?'

'I don't know.'

Isaac trod carefully across the glass to the other side of the room. The bed was on its side, blocking his mother's bedside drawers. He looked down the gap between the mattress and the furniture and there it was: the source of the banging. He watched as the bottom drawer opened against the mattress and bounced shut again. This happened over and over and over. Each time the drawer opened it opened more forcefully than the last and sprang shut even harder. A growl of frustration came from within the drawers.

'Over here.'

Sacha ran towards Isaac and grabbed the other end of the bed. Together, they moved it away, laid it back down on the floor. They both stared at the drawer. It didn't open again. Sacha unclipped a Pokeball from her belt.

'Beedrill, I choose-'

Isaac grabbed her arm before she could throw. He shook his head.

'Leave this to me.'

He shone the torch on the mysterious drawer and approached cautiously. He wrapped his fingers around the handle and prepared to pull. He looked at Sacha who nodded her approval. And just as he went to pull, the drawer sprung open. It whacked Isaac in the shin. He fell back. Then a shower of leaves cut through the air. Sacha ducked behind the bed. One of them struck Isaac's chest. It drew blood. Then a vine whipped across his face.

'Bulba.'

'Bulbasaur!' Isaac shouted, a sudden glee in his voice. He forgot the pain and stared at the Pokemon in pure amazement. Bulbasaur forgot his anger. He ran into Isaac's arm and wrapped his vines around him.

'Isaac?'

'Bulbasaur was my dad's. I thought he died with him.'

'So what is he doing here?' Sacha asked.

Isaac ran his hands over Bulbasaur's bulb. He was unharmed during the fire. Or the fight. Whatever had happened. And suddenly Bulbasaur crawled back towards his drawer.

'Hey, Bulbasaur. It's ok. It's me. Don't be scared. Remember me?'

But Bulbasaur wasn't retreating out of fear. Bulbasaur's vine stretched back into the drawer and pulled a piece of paper from within. Handwriting hurriedly scrawled across the page. Handwriting Isaac recognised, but he was unsure where from. Until he read the message.

_Don't believe them. Don't trust anyone. They have your mother and I. I couldn't stop them. Mount Moon. I'm alive. I love you. Dad._


	2. Chapter 2: Isaac Bloom's Pokemon Lesson

Chapter 2: Isaac Bloom's Pokemon Lesson

'Bulbasaur, finish it with tackle attack,' Isaac shouted over the sound of roaring waves.

Bulbasaur planted his feet firmly in the ground, then propelled himself forward. He charged into an already dazed Poliwag. The water Pokemon rolled backwards to the feet of its trainer. Defeated, the fisherman took a Pokeball and withdrew Poliwag.

'That's a strong Pokemon you got yourself,' the fisherman said.

'He needs to be,' Isaac said to himself, 'Bulbasaur, good fight. Come back.'

A small crowd had gathered around the battle. Isaac had been on Route 12 since breakfast. And in that time, he had defeated five trainers in a one on one Pokemon battle. Though the fishermen trainers' penchant for water Pokemon gave Isaac a rather unfair advantage. Nonetheless, it was all a good experience for the new Pokemon trainer, determined to defeat whoever stood in his way.

'I need to train my Bulbasaur up some more. Who's next?'

Isaac looked around for his next competitor. Bulbasaur stared out into the crowd too. Both with a steely determination on their faces. There were no volunteers. The five trainers who had been defeated were lesson enough for the other travelers on Route 12. Just as Isaac decided it was time to try somewhere new, a female voice suddenly piped up from behind the crowd. Hearing her, the people parted and allowed the new challenger through. Sacha took up her position opposite Isaac, Pokeball in hand.

'What are you doing here?'

'I could ask you the same thing,' Sacha said.

'I'm training,' he looked at the spectators, not wanting to give too much away of his parents' situation, 'you know why.'

'This isn't training. I've been watching you. There's no strategy to what you're doing. It's pure rage. You're full of hate, both of you, and you're using poor Poliwags and Goldeens to make you feel better. It's time you faced a real challenge.'

'Bulbasaur, get ready,' Isaac commanded. Bulbasaur obeyed. Sacha had struck a nerve.

'Jolteon, I choose you!'

Sacha threw her Pokeball into the battleground. In a flash of bright light, Jolteon appeared. And even after the light faded, Jolteon seemed to glow under the rays of the beating sun.

'Not so easy for you as a water Pokemon, huh?'

'I didn't know you had a Jolteon. That's awesome. Hope it's strong. Bulbasaur, vine whip.'

Bulbasaur threw a vine forward. It cracked in the air before slamming into Jolteon, wiping the electric type off its feet. But Jolteon was fast. It leapt back up and lunged forward. Bulbasaur managed to dodge.

'Jolteon, quick attack.'

With that, Jolteon became a blur. Moving faster and faster around Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur tried to keep watch. Turning. This way and that. Then—thud. Jolteon shunted into Bulbasaur from behind. Then, it sparked with electricity. Thundershock. Bulbasaur had just enough warning from Isaac to dodge.

'Use vine whip. Hold it in place,' Isaac said.

And Bulbasaur did as he was told. Both vines flung forward, gripping Jolteon around its middle. Dragging it from side to side, lifting it up and throwing Jolteon to the ground. Several times. Each time harder than the last. Yet Sacha didn't flinch. Nor did Jolteon. That was what worried Isaac the most.

'It's not too late to quit,' Isaac shouted in a false showing of confidence.

'I know,' Sacha smirked. 'Jolteon, thunder.'

Raised in the air, at its highest point. Sparks began to fly from Jolteon's skin. When he hit the ground, Jolteon stood firm, determined not to be lifted again, no matter how hard Bulbasaur tried. Panicked, Bulbasaur tried to release Jolteon from his grip, but he couldn't. His vines were stuck in place. Paralyzed from Jolteon's touch. And then. Electricity erupted from Jolteon, sending its thunder attack charging down Bulbasaur's vines until it reached the grass Pokemon's body. It was too much for Bulbasaur to take. Jolteon broke free from its bind. Bulbasaur rolled over to its side, unable to continue the fight.

'Good job Jolteon, return.'

And with Jolteon back inside its Pokeball, Sacha turned her back on Isaac and Bulbasaur and returned in the direction of Lavender Town. The once admiring spectators smirked and laughed as they dispersed, leaving an already broken Isaac even more fragile with Bulbasaur in his arms.

'Is he okay?'

Isaac shot to his feet as Nurse Joy reappeared in the Pokemon Centre lobby. Joy was tired, bags under the eyes were a permanent fixture and she had sweat running down her face. Her uniform clung to her; it was grubby, dirty and she probably hadn't changed out of it for over a month. The Chansey by her side looked no better.

'What? Oh, Bulbasaur, right? He'll be fine but you just have to wait,' Joy looked around at the other trainers, everyone waiting for her just as anxiously as Isaac. 'There are Pokemon here less fortunate than your Bulbasaur. I thought I'd seen enough during the war, but things have never gotten better. They were supposed to send more help and medicine from Celadon but that never came. I'm doing my best.'

'Of course,' Isaac sheepishly retreated. As he took his seat once more, he overheard Joy give the heartbreaking news to a family on the other side of the room.

'I'm so sorry. I did all I could. Farfetch'd didn't make it.'

A mother, in tears herself, consoled her son of no more than eight years old as he cried. She held him tightly and stifled his screams against her chest. Isaac turned away.

'Train us. Please.'

Bulbasaur had been restored to full health and he stood beside Isaac in Sacha's kitchen. Isaac pleaded for Sacha's help.

'Are you sure you need me?' Sacha said in a matter-of-fact tone.

'Yes. Please. Bulbasaur was my dad's but he's not strong enough for what we need to do. My dad caught him when we were out together one day, but he never used Bulbasaur in any real battles. He had a weird kind of dislike for grass types: he only took Bulbasaur with him because I asked him to, in place of me.'

'I can't help you. You're too stubborn.'

'I won't be. I'll listen.'

'Both of you?'

'Bulba,' the Pokémon nodded in agreement.

With a deep sigh of regret, Sacha said 'fine. Meet me on Route 7 tomorrow morning. Bring some spare Pokeballs. We'll start with catching your first Pokémon.'

Isaac hardly slept that night. He kept his father's note by his bedside, staring at the rushed handwriting that was begging for Isaac to help. He knew, no matter how much he wanted to, he could not help. Not yet. There was too much at risk. Whoever had his parents at Mt Moon, they had to be strong. Marcus Bloom was no weakling. Neither were his Pokemon. If someone had managed to take him hostage, then they'd also defeated him in battle. That was a thought to be feared. Isaac and a barely trained Bulbasaur were going to be no match for them. It had never been one of Isaac's most common traits, but he needed now to train himself in patience as much as he had to train Bulbasaur and himself for the threats that were to come. Sacha had worked for months, even years, to get where she was now. Three gym badges into the challenge. Isaac didn't have years. Nor did his parents.

The rain poured throughout the night and into the next morning. Normally it wasn't uncommon to find a Vulpix or even a Growlithe around Route 7 but the weather wasn't going to tempt them away from their dens. Despite how cool Isaac thought it would be to add a fire type to his team, he was also relieved that Bulbasaur wouldn't need to do battle against a Pokemon that would be super effective against him.

Route 7 was poorly looked after. Sacha and Isaac waded through the tall grass, searching for any sign of Pokemon that might be worth catching. It was only when they reached a clearing that they found a pack of Rattata.

'Now's your chance. Before they run,' Sacha whispered.

'But there's…at least eight of them,' Isaac argued.

'So? You don't always get to fight them one on one.'

'Fine.' Isaac took a step forward. 'Bulbasaur, tackle!'

And on that command, the Rattata scattered.

'Vine whip.'

Bulbasaur lashed out at one of the running Rattata, catching it by the tail. While the others escaped, Bulbasaur lifted the final Rattata into the air by its tail, swinging it in the air. Isaac jumped and cheered. Sacha shook her head in disappointment. She saw what was coming.

Rattata bit down on Bulbasaur's vine, instantly falling free. Bulbasaur retracted his vine and remained still, waiting for the next shout from his trainer. Rattata, instead of fleeing, stood its ground, determined to put up a fight.

'There's no type advantage here. It's all about strategy.'

'Razor leaf,' Isaac shouted.

Bulbasaur responded. A shower of leaves scythed through the air in Rattata's direction. The rodent Pokemon almost vanished from sight. It was too quick. It dodged every leaf and was soon upon Bulbasaur, tackling it into the air.

'You're not paying attention,' Sacha shouted much to Isaac's annoyance. 'You're full of anger. It's consumed you. Each time you battle, you're battling with your emotion, trying to use brute strength to win. You must be smarter than that. You must control yourself. Both of you.'

Bulbasaur got to his feet once more. Rattata jumped forward for another tackle. Bulbasaur dodged, lunged for its own attack, but missed. The two Pokemon exchanged blows. Bulbasaur managed to get a brush of its vine whip on Rattata's back but not enough to hurt it. Rattata responded by using bite on one of Bulbasaur's legs. Bulbasaur was coming off worse. Until—

'Bulbasaur, use razor leaf again,' Isaac had an idea. He sounded determined.

The leaves flew across the plain in the direction of Rattata once more. And sure enough, Rattata used quick attack to leap out of the way. It rushed towards Bulbasaur, ready to counter. As it had before. Which was exactly what Isaac wanted.

'Surround yourself with your vines.'

Unsure of the command, but loyal nonetheless, Bulbasaur unleashed his vines. Not in attack, but in defence, lowering them around himself, creating a circle around him, an inch off the ground. Rattata was moving too quickly. It saw the vines too late. It tripped.

The impact with the vines sent Rattata flying into the air.

'Now vine whip!'

The vines raised from the grounds and lashed at Rattata as it flew uncontrollably through the air. Each whip from Bulbasaur inflicted more and more pain on his opponent. Until Rattata landed in the grass. It remained still. Its chest rose up and down but there was no fighting spirit remaining in the Pokemon.

It was time. Isaac took one of his Pokeballs and threw it through the air. It hit Rattata on the chest, bounced up and opened. A veil of light emerged from the ball and engulfed Rattata. Rattata disappeared inside and the ball closed, hitting the floor. It wriggled slightly, from side to side. Isaac watched with hesitation. Then it stopped. Isaac raced towards the Pokeball and gathered it to his chest.

'I did it. I did it. Did you see that?' He looked to a slightly put out Bulbasaur, 'We did it. I meant we.'

The sound of clapping caught Isaac's attention. He turned, expecting to see Sacha patronising his first catch, but it was coming from behind her too. They looked at one another. Bulbasuar crawled to Isaac's feet. Sacha had a hand on her Pokeballs.

A figure emerged from behind a tree. A man, late twenties, dark hair, dressed in black shirt and black trousers, complete with black cap. A single ornate red letter 'R' embossed on the left breast of his shirt.

'Good fight. I must say, your Bulbasaur is quite talented. I think I'll take him first.'

'Isaac get back,' Sacha stood in front of her friend.

'I won't let you have him.'

'I wasn't asking,' the stranger said. 'Koffing, go!'


	3. Chapter 3: Isaac Bloom's Pokemon Breakou

Chapter 3: Isaac Bloom's Pokemon Breakout

Bulbasaur had fought hard but it was now struggling. Koffing had already defeated Sacha's Beedrill and was wheezing towards an almost defeated Bulbasaur when Isaac leapt in front of his Pokemon, taking the attack himself. Isaac fell backwards into the grass, to the sound of the Stranger's laughter. The Stranger grunted as he walked towards them.

'You're as weak as your Pokemon. Maybe that Bulbasaur isn't worth my time after all,' he said. 'But I think I'll take it anyway, just to teach you a valuable lesson.'

'Step away from the children,' a woman shouted. She climbed off her motorcycle and ran towards the battlefield, Growlithe by her side. 'Growlithe, flamethrower.'

Growlithe charged forwards and hurled a torrent of fire at Koffing, critically injuring the poison Pokemon and knocking it out with just one attack.

'And who are you supposed to be?'

The woman stared hard at the Stranger. It wasn't the first time she'd come across a bully dressed all in black and wearing that red 'R' symbol.

'I'm Officer Jenny of Lavender Town. And you're under arrest.'

'Team Rocket?'

'Yes,' Officer Jenny said, 'they've been operating in Kanto for a few years now. They used to be a small criminal group: the odd theft here, a break-in there. But when the majority of Kanto's best trainers left their homes to join the war effort, there was a gap for them. They rose under a mysterious leader to more heinous crimes than before. They've been stealing Pokemon, smuggling Pokemon, a while back they even came to Lavender Town to steal Cubone skulls. They're bad news, but I don't know what this one's doing here.'

'Do you think he's anything to do with what happened at my house?'

Officer Jenny looked over Isaac, shaking her head. 'That was an accident Isaac. A tragic accident. As evil as they are, I don't think Team Rocket had a part in that.'

Sacha placed her hand on top of Isaac's. It was comforting. He looked to her and they both acknowledged that Team Rocket had to be behind what had happened, or was happening, to Isaac's parents. With no knowledge of the note from Isaac's father, Officer Jenny had no reason to suspect anything other than a horrible accident.

Officer Jenny left the two teenagers and went into the interrogation room where the Rocket Grunt was being held. It had been a few hours since they had first brought him in and Jenny had got no real information out of him yet, but she was certain it was only a matter of time. As they waited outside, Isaac's frustration grew.

'This is ridiculous. Just sitting here doing nothing. He has to know something. And if not, then I should still be out there, looking for my mum and dad.'

'Then tell Officer Jenny about your father still being alive,' said Sacha.

'Trust nobody, it said,' Isaac reminded her.

'I don't know if he meant for you to take that so literally. I mean, she's a police officer.'

Isaac shook his head. 'No. And you can't tell her either.'

Sacha sighed. That wasn't the answer Isaac wanted.

'Promise me.'

'Fine. I promise.'

The door to the interrogation room opened and Jenny appeared once more. She was less frustrated as she re-joined the corridor this time, but her face bore a look of confusion. She looked to Isaac and went to speak and changed her mind before changing it back.

'Isaac, he wants to talk to you.'

'What? Why?' It was Sacha that spoke first.

'I don't know. He won't say. He just says he wants to talk to Isaac.'

'He asked for him by name?' Sacha spoke again.

Officer Jenny nodded. Isaac could feel her stare. He didn't know how to react. If this man knew Isaac's name then he had to have something to do with his parents. That was the only way it made sense.

'Isaac. You don't have to go in there if you don't want to. Nobody is going to force you.'

'It's fine. I'll do it. Let me in.'

There was just a desk and two chairs in the room. The member of Team Rocket sat on one side, Isaac on the other. The rest of the room was filled with silence. They stared at one another while Isaac tried, and failed, to figure his counterpart out.

'What's your name?' he asked, but the Rocket Grunt remained silent. 'You told Officer Jenny that you wanted to talk to me, so talk. You know my name, tell me yours.'

The Rocket Grunt leant forward. 'Can they hear us?' he said, gesturing towards the door.

Isaac shook his head. 'Why?'

'My name is Hayden. I work for Team Rocket and we have your parents. If you get me out of here, I can tell you where they are.'

Hearing that felt like being punched in the stomach. Isaac felt his breath leave him. It took a few moments for him to compose himself, but he was well aware that the man opposite him already knew how to push Isaac's buttons. He was emotionally unstable and easily manipulated. And yet, despite knowing that about himself, he knew he wouldn't be able to change that.

'They're at Mount Moon. I know that already,' Isaac finally responded. He got to his feet, ready to give up and leave.

'No. They _were_ at Mount Moon. Team Rocket have left their base there. We left the fossils to the scientists. We've moved on to far greater things. Things that your father is going to help us with.'

'If you need my dad's help, why did you take mum too?'

'Haven't you ever heard of leverage? We were supposed to grab you but you weren't there, so we made do with what we had.'

Isaac sat back down. He somehow didn't have the energy to stand any longer. He felt like his heart had been ripped out: it should have been him. His mother was innocent in all of this. Taken along because Isaac wasn't home.

'Get me out of here and I'll take you to your parents. They'll be safe. Trust me.'

Sacha ran over to Isaac as soon as the door opened. Isaac looked over his shoulder at the Grunt, Hayden, then closed the door. Officer Jenny joined them.

'Anything?'

'No,' Isaac said. 'He just wanted me in there to taunt me about our battle. To tell me how when he gets out he'll take my Bulbasaur and get far away from here. Speaking of which, where is he?'

'It's feeding time for the Growlithes here. Your Bulbasaur wanted to try the food. I hope that's alright.'

It was two hours later that Isaac and Sacha, along with Officer Jenny and Bulbasaur, left the police station of Lavender Town. The sun was beginning to set and Pokemon Tower cast the town in the darkness of its shadow. It was a cold night too, a chill in the air carried by the sea to the south of the town as well as the eerie sensation of ghosts lurking around every corner.

'What will you do with that Team Rocket guy now, Officer?' Sacha asked.

'I've been speaking with the Jenny in Celadon City as they've been having trouble with Team Rocket of their own. First thing tomorrow morning, we've organised for an escort of Machokes to deliver the Grunt to Celadon for further questioning.'

Isaac remained silent. He'd barely said a word since coming out of the interrogation room. And suddenly he stopped in the middle of the path.

'I have to go back,' he said.

'What?'

'I left my jacket at the station. I'll catch up.'

'You weren't wearing a jacket,' Sacha pointed out.

'Jacket? I said hat. I left my hat.'

'Right.'

Sacha and Officer Jenny looked at one another.

'Just don't be long,' Jenny shouted after him.

Back at the police station, Isaac made his way discretely past officers working late in order to find his way to the interrogation room. Where Hayden would be waiting for him. When he got to the corridor, Isaac was – perhaps naively – surprised to see two officers standing outside the room, with the job of making sure nobody got in and nobody got out. Isaac was certain Sacha knew he was up to something and he wondered how much time he would have before somebody came to check on him or until Sacha decided she should work out what Isaac was up to for real.

'Bulba,' Bulbasaur croaked quietly.

'Don't. I don't need this right now.'

'Bulbasaur.'

'Please. This is the only way. If we want to find my parents, we're going to have to do some bad stuff.'

'Bulba.'

'No. I'm sorry, but if you're not going to help…' Isaac unclipped a Pokeball from his belt. Bulbasaur backed off at the thought of being trapped inside. He'd spent years confined to a Pokeball as a companion of Isaac's father; Bulbasaur had grown fond of the open air.

Isaac placed the ball back on his belt and took hold of another one instead. He opened it up quietly and released his freshly caught Rattata. Rattata looked around for who it was supposed to battle but seeing no other Pokemon but Bulbasaur turned back to Isaac and looked up at him, hesitant and confused.

'Rattata, I need you to be fast. Like you were when we battled,' Isaac whispered. 'You see those two guards. I want you to use quick attack and take them out. Think you can do that?'

'Bulbasaur,' the grass Pokemon intervened again.

'Fine. No violence,' Isaac was growing more impatient, 'but use your speed, run past them, to the end of the corridor and make some noise. Do something that's going to drag them away.'

Rattata ran. It stopped outside the interrogation room, staring up at the guards. Both of them confused to see the Pokemon there. They looked up and down the corridor. Isaac hid from their view. And when they reached out to Rattata, it fled.

'Should that be here?' one of them said.

'How do I know?'

'Go get it.'

'You seen how fast that thing is? There's no way I'm catching that.'

'If we've got an infestation, we're gonna be in big trouble.'

'Fine. But you're helping me catch it.'

'What about him?' the guard said, gesturing to Hayden's room.

'What? You scared Team Rocket are going to come for him?'

'No. Of course not.'

Isaac watched as the two men continued to argue as they made their way to the end of the corridor in search of that pesky Rattata. When they were out of sight, Isaac and Bulbasaur ran to the interrogation room. On command, Bulbasaur used vine whip, breaking the handle from the door. Isaac pushed it open. Hayden sat, arms folded and legs up on the table, waiting expectantly.

'What took you so long?' the Grunt smirked.

'Come on. Before anyone finds us.'

Hayden led the way, heading south from Lavender Town. Isaac and Bulbasaur followed. Rattata was back inside its Pokeball after a good job at the station. Hayden was still unhappy that they'd been forced to flee the station before he could pick up his own Pokemon from confiscation. They ran outside of Lavender Town and made their way onto Route 12, when Isaac came to a halt. He doubled over, exhausted. He couldn't keep up any longer.

'What are you waiting for? Do you want them to catch us?' Hayden whispered angrily.

'How much further?'

'Not far.'

Hayden continued to sprint. Isaac started up again, desperate to keep the pace but falling further behind with every step. Until he fell. Or tripped. His face hit the dirt. He looked down to his legs where he was losing all feeling and suddenly he knew he'd done wrong. An Ekans wrapped itself around Isaac's ankles. Isaac looked to Bulbasaur for help but then watched his partner disappear as a smokescreen set in around them.

'Bulbasaur!' Isaac cried out. But there was no reply. He felt his legs free again and he got up and hurried around, with no idea where he was going amidst the smoke.

'Thanks for your help, kid, but we'll take it from here,' it was Hayden's voice that he heard. It fought through the smog and prompted laughter from others. It was all a set up. Isaac had broken a member of the most wanted gang in all of Kanto out of prison and returned him to his colleagues. All because of his longing for his parents. How could he be so stupid? And soon he'd have to tell Sacha what he had done. And Officer Jenny. Then he'd probably be locked up himself. It was a crime, breaking someone out of jail, that's what Isaac seemed to have forgotten in his desperation for news of his family.

The smokescreen cleared. Isaac stood in the middle of the grass. Alone. Team Rocket had gone. And so had Bulbasaur.


End file.
